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Further Workplace Health and Safety bosses will be grilled at the inquest into the Dreamworld disaster today, after a leading inspector admitted he had "no confidence" in the emergency procedures in place on the Thunder River Rapids ride.

More interest in fixed rate mortgages

Confusion over the direction of interest rates has many home loan customers considering the peace of mind that can be found in a fixed rate mortgage.

A new survey has found 60 per cent of respondents are contemplating a fixed rate mortgage because they are unsure whether lenders will follow future rate decisions of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA).

A speech by RBA governor Glenn Stevens in Hong Kong on Monday provided no further clues to the short-term direction of official rates.

He said that while the threat of a major fallout from Europe's sovereign debt crisis had eased, European policymakers still had a long way to go sorting out their problems.

"During that long journey, there will surely be numerous episodes of heightened anxiety, any one of which could erupt into a more extreme crisis if one or more of the key actors makes a serious mistake," he told the Credit Suisse Asian Investment Conference.

In February the central bank was widely expected to cut the official cash rate following reductions in both November and December.

Instead, the RBA left the cash rate unchanged at 4.25 per cent, while lenders lifted their standard variable mortgage rates because of increased funding costs.

"The banks, acting independently of the RBA and lifting their variable rates, has caused quite a bit of concern and confusion among consumers," mortgage broker Loan Market corporate spokesman Paul Smith said on Tuesday releasing the findings of a new online survey.

The central bank left the cash rate unchanged in March, as did nearly all lenders.

Mr Stevens, after both the February and March board meetings, indicated that the central bank remains ready to cut the cash rate should "demand conditions weaken materially".

Minutes of the March meeting will be released on Tuesday.

Loan Market's online survey of 764 respondents found that 46 per cent were definitely considering a fixed rate home loan, while 14 per cent said they would possibly fix part of their mortgage.

"With attractive fixed products still available and the European debt crisis remaining unresolved, some consumers may seek the comfort of locking in their mortgage rate for a few years," Mr Smith said.

Data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) last week showed that 11.4 per cent of home loans granted in January were fixed rate loans for two years or more.

This was only slightly below the 11.7 per cent recorded in December, the largest monthly proportion since June 2008.

However, those looking to refinance their mortgage should also be aware that a fall in property values has reduced their borrowing power.

ABS data shows house prices in capital cities fell by 4.8 per cent during 2011.

Financial comparison website RateCity CEO Damian Smith said borrowers who have taken on a home loan with a small deposit are most at risk from the impact of falling prices.

For example, if a property was purchased for $400,000 with a five per cent deposit, but then that house price fell by 10 per cent, instead of having $20,000 of equity value in the property there would be none at all.

"If you try to refinance in those circumstances, you will find yourself owing more than the property is worth - a mortgage of $380,000 as against property value of just $360,000," Mr Smith said in a statement.

Refinancing makes up a big proportion of business for the mortgage industry.

"If property values drop further and it discourages borrowers from refinancing, the mortgage market could be in for a very slow year," Mr Smith said.